Sara, a country girl living in New York City, is kidnapped by aliens intent on stocking their larder. After the horrors of a human abattoir, she comes gradually to her senses to find herself playing nurse to a non-responsive patient, on a different planet, with a new face. And discovers that her charge is being deliberately drugged into insensibility..."Restoree" is one of the earliest examples of science fiction romance. The romance itself is not too bad - a little overly quick to establish, but at least based on admiration for bravery and action (as well as the pretty face Sara now possesses). Sadly, Sara gets less and less opportunity to exhibit bravery or action as the book moves on, and does a lot of wailing and being afraid. Along with plenty of blushing in response to grinning. The world she's on also has a system of men "claiming" women, and Sara is the only woman who is a mover in the story.The set up is one which keeps tripping you up, but never so completely you give up and stop reading. Why do the Mil eat sentient beings instead of, say, vast herds of wildebeast? Why do they skin but not kill people? Don't people store better with their skin on? The over-the-top horror toward restorees (of a kill-nearly-on-sight variety) also doesn't make a huge amount of sense. And her acquisition of their language is very unlikely.Still, it's an entertaining enough read and holds up on re-read quite well for a 1960s novel. Interesting to note that Bujold's "Shards of Honour" has a very similar plot - woman from another planet gets tangled in politics of militaristic world and ends up marrying the regent - though Bujold does it a great deal better.
